Fragile Architecture
by Hooty-McBoon
Summary: Post film. Oneshot. Arthur is there when Ariadne almost breaks down, and she decides that she never wants him to leave.


**Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.**

**I don't have a beta so there will be some grammar/spelling errors 'cause I'm a bit rubbish at that. (hopefully it isn't too bad). Enjoy.**

**Fragile Architecture**

She was shaking, the tremors were so violent that she wasn't sure how she had made it this far, clutching her suitcase tightly she stood outside LAX staring at a line of taxis; she wasn't sure what to do next. Cobb had already been picked up, she had smiled warmly at Miles as she brushed past him, putting on a brave face as she did her very best to stop herself from breaking down. She had gone too far, she knew it she could feel her heart beat racing as fear swept over her. She placed her suitcase on the ground and slipped a hand into her pocket, her thumb slipped over the smooth metal of the bishop as she reassured herself that she was most certainly awake. A hand on the small of her back startled her further, she jumped and glanced up at the man stood to her left. His dark hair slicked back his face stony, he did not look at her nor did he speak as he picked up her bag and guided her to a taxi. She slipped inside her heartbeat had slowed now, Arthur's calm demeanour was strangely contagious. She was still gripping her totem as he put both of their bags in the boot of the taxi, he was soon by her side once more telling the taxi driver where they needed to go. Ariadne's eyes were wide as she watched him, he frowned slightly as he made eye contact with her, he could see that she was visibly shaking now. His hand reached out and took hers. When the cab pulled up outside a very glamorous looking hotel, Arthur handed the driver a crisp 20 and told him to keep the change. He slid out still gripping her hand. Once he had both of their bags he pulled her into the lobby of the hotel passed the reception desk and into an elevator. He was so in control that she wondered once more if she were dreaming, she slipped her hand into her pocket and gripped the chess piece tightly in the hand that wasn't holding his. They stopped in front of a door and Arthur looked down at their hands, he was about to tell her that he needed to let go to open the door, but he glanced into her eyes and thought better of it, instead he put the bags down and pulled a key card from his jacket, slipping it in he used the hand that was still holding Ariadne's to open the door, he led her inside and sat her down on the double bed.

"I need to go get the bags." He whispered as he pulled his hand free, she nodded slowly though she didn't really hear him. She was quite clearly miles away and when he returned with the luggage he wasn't surprised to see that she hadn't moved a muscle. He placed both bags at the bottom of the bed before sitting beside her; "Ariadne?" he whispered her name and her eyes shot up to him, they were roving his face wildly, she was panicking; "I need you to stay calm."

A laugh spluttered from her lips, his request was ridiculous; "Calm?" she repeated the word slowly trying to get her mind around the concept. She had stopped shaking and was doing her best to calm her rapidly beating heart.

"You went in too deep." He whispered, his hand lifted to her cheek, he brushed the pad of his thumb over her cheekbone, she did not react physically, but internally her heart had skipped a beat and her mind was running away with her. This wonderfully perfect man who was sat in front of her was gazing into her eyes with genuine concern. "Even after going two layers deep you would expect an adverse reaction...but you went into Limbo." He swallowed hard and watched as she flinched at the mention of the fourth layer that she had entered. Her hand was once again in her pocket holding on to her totem for dear life; "You should get some rest." His hand slipped from her face as he glanced at the double bed that they were both sitting on.

"I can't." She whispered.

Arthur smiled sympathetically at her, she didn't exactly trust her own mind; "You will be fine, I promise. I will be here when you wake up. You probably won't even dream." His voice was reassuring as always and she found that she was slipping her shoes off and her jacket. Arthur turned away and opened her suitcase; he took his time before removing a pair of pyjamas for her to wear. Handing them to her he smiled; "I'll be in the bathroom, call me when you're changed."

She bit down on her lip and nodded slowly, the second she heard the door click closed she was throwing her clothes off, they were suffocating despite how loose they were. She picked up the pyjamas that Arthur had laid out for her and slipped into them, she noticed that the longer he was out of the room the faster her heart started beating. He was her anchor, he was what kept her from losing her mind.

"Arthur. I'm dressed." Her voice was small but he appeared almost instantly, of course he had been waiting for her to call him. He didn't want to leave her alone longer than was necessary he could tell by the tone of her voice that she was already beginning to panic again. He had removed his tie and his waistcoat, Ariadne watched as he slowly made his way around the bed to sit in an armchair by her side.

"Try to sleep," he soothed her and watched as she slipped down in the covers; "I will be right here when you wake up. I promise." His eyes remained locked with hers as she hugged the pillow tightly. She scrunched her eyes closed willing herself to sleep, she hadn't realised how exhausted she really was. Her body was aching as if she really had lived the dreams. She was surprised to find the next time she opened her eyes that it was morning. She had fallen asleep without realising it, bolting upright she reached for the bedside table where she had left her totem the night before. As her hand closed around the cold metal of the chess piece she then noticed that Arthur had kept his promise to her. She was sleeping somewhat peacefully in the armchair next to her bed. A contented smile slipped onto her lips she was so glad that he was still there.

"Arthur?" He jerked awake at the sound of her voice, his eyes are bleary and he has to rub them twice before he realises what is going on. She smiles at him and sits herself up in the bed; "You slept there?" she doesn't really need to ask him as she already knows that he did.

He smiles sheepishly; "It was one way to ensure that my promise was kept." He rubs the back of his head slowly as he gets to his feet; "Well now that you know I'm here I think I'll take a shower. I'll be right back I promise."

Ariadne almost snapped at him his tone no longer sounded caring it was beginning to sound condescending, she supposed that this was a sign that she was feeling better, she pulled her arms up above her head and listened as her shoulders popped loudly. She stood slowly and glance quickly around the room, her brain had been too foggy the night before to really understand where she was or what the room looked like. She was surprised at how similar it was to her very own creation. Though the walls in this hotel room where nearer to white than yellow and the cover on the bed was very flowery. She let her hand brush over the covers memorising the feel of them, the sound of the shower stopping caused her ears to twitch slightly, Ariadne looked down at herself and grimaced slightly, this probably wasn't the most flattering item of clothing she owned.

Arthur pushed the bathroom door open a towel in one hand, he was using it to dry his hair, Ariadne marvelled at the sight. She had never seen his hair like this before, and before she could stop herself she was standing in front of him holding a few strands of his nearly black hair between her fingers. Her breath was fanning out across his face they were so close that to kiss her all he would need to do was duck his head a few inches; "Oh." Ariadne seemed horrified as she came to her senses; "I'm so sorry..." she blushed a deep crimson and he couldn't help the smirk that lifted his eyes happily. He was about to tell her that it was fine, but she had already ducked into the bathroom having grabbed some clothes to change into.

Arthur stood for a moment his heart beating a little bit faster than usual before he came to his senses, he lifted the towel back to his head and continued to dry it, before pulling a comb and some hair gel from his bag. Arthur can hear the shower begin running as he starts to gel his hair back a small smile lingering on his lips. Before long Arthur found himself waiting for her, he was fully dressed now, his polished shoes slipped slightly against the carpet as he moved to the mirror to examine his hair once more.

"You know some people might mistake that for vanity." The amused tone to Ariadne's voice caused Arthur's heart to skip a beat, she was most certainly doing better. Arthur turned around to face her, a smirk placed delicately on his lips.

"You think I'm vain?" his tone was more of a challenge than anything else.

"That isn't what I said." She countered, before moving further into the room, she was also fully dressed, missing only her shoes.

His smirk remained as he changed the subject; "Do you want to get breakfast?" her reaction to this question was to place both hands on her stomach and nod slowly.

"What time is it I'm starving?" Arthur looked down at his watch.

"Um, it's 2PM. So we may have missed breakfast." There was pause as he let her take in this information, it had been about 8PM when they had arrived at the hotel; "It must be jetlag mixed with the stress you went through." Arthur's jaw clenched as he reminded himself that she had been to Limbo.

Ariadne had been watching his face, she could see the tension, a frown furrowed her brow; "Is something wrong?" she took a step towards him.

Arthur felt his eyes soften at the concern in her voice; "I was worried about you, I thought you might have...I...I wasn't sure you'd wake up." Arthur wasn't comfortable sharing his feelings with Ariadne, he wasn't comfortable sharing his feelings with anyone, ever, so this experience was making him squirm.

Her smile was reassuring but it didn't stop Arthur's heart from beating an erratic rhythm in his chest; "But I'm ok." Arthur had to resist the urge to role his eyes, she may be fine now but she wasn't, not when he'd led her from the airport not before she had slept, only now that she had almost slept the day away was she back to her old self.

"You weren't." He murmured, and for the first time he sounded vulnerable.

Ariadne reached out to him and took his hand in hers; "Yes, but I am now." There was a pause as their eyes met, his were hard and guarded while hers were soft and warm; "thanks to you." The blush that warmed his cheeks was most probably visible, but in that moment Arthur didn't care. All he really cared about was the beautiful young woman who was stood directly in front of him. Arthur's left hand lifted slightly, his right one still clasped tightly in Ariadne's hand, his fingers brushed gently against her cheek before cupping it gently.

"I was mad at Dom." He swallows hard after speaking, his eyes narrowed slightly and his left hand moved from her cheek to brush a lock of hair from her face to behind her ear; "...I was mad that he let you go into Limbo. If I had been there..." he let his thought trail off and he watched as Ariadne smiled slightly, she squeezed his hand gently in an attempt to reassure him.

"If I hadn't gone with him we wouldn't have succeeded." She sounds so sure that Arthur knows it must be true, but the doesn't mean that he wasn't still a tiny bit mad at Cobb for letting her go with him in the first place; "I thought we were getting breakfast?" there was a pause as she smiled; "Or maybe we should just call it lunch now, considering it is getting quite late."

He smiles, and it reaches his eye crinkling them at the corners in a way that she finds ridiculously adorable; "I suppose we should get some lunch." He pulls away slightly tugging at her arm; "I know the perfect place." He pauses as she digs her heels into the floor, she is still without shoes. Arthur releases her hand and watches as she puts her shoes onto her small feet, once she is done he takes her hand again and drags her from the room patting his pockets to make sure he has three things; his totem, money and the hotel room key.

Eating lunch together seemed like an awfully couple-y thing to do. Arthur had only thought of this after they had both started to dig into their meal, they were sat in a small Italian restaurant Ariadne was hungrily wolfing down her meal, she had surprised herself by her own appetite, and while Arthur didn't seem surprised at all she still felt slightly embarrassed. Slowly slightly she finished her mouthful and smiles slightly at Arthur who was just finishing his own meal, she was still amazing at how easily he kept her calm despite everything that had happened. She cast her gaze down to her hands, her mind drifting back to the dream and back to Limbo when she had dragged Fischer off the side of the building.

Arthur watched as her eyes glazed over, he knew what she must be thinking about, but he didn't particularly want her to dwell on the dream; "Ariadne," he paused for a beat, but she didn't look at him, he raised his right hand and waved it in front of her face before clicking his middle finger and thumb together to attract her attention.

She jumped; "Oh...sorry. I, I drifted off." She smiled sheepishly before frowning as a thought hit her, there was a long pause before she voiced her thought; "I should get back to Paris soon." The sad look remained as she continued; "I need to finish my degree..." she trailed off and sighed heavily. There is a long pause and she knows there is something that she needs to say, and he is waiting for her to say it; "Come with me."

His eyes widen a fraction but Ariadne isn't sure if his shock is real, he takes in her request for a moment before nodding slowly; "We're breaking the rules."

She smiles; "Cobb would be proud." His smirk grows into a smile that lifts his eyes and he has to stifle a chuckle.

"We are supposed to stay away from each other. You know avoid suspicion." He is serious now, but she knows that he isn't going back now.

"I don't want to stay away from you." There is a pause and Ariadne is afraid that she has said too much, she watches as Arthur's eye soften and he begins smiling. His hand reaches across the table to take hers. He wasn't exactly sure what he was doing, but it felt right to take her hand, felt right that he was with her. Ariadne's teeth dug into her bottom lips as she bit it gently, she knew that she was asking a lot of him, but she knew that he would do it without questioning her. They had come to an understanding, they were both feeling the same about each other, and while they knew that they couldn't say that four letter word as yet, they were both feeling it. Arthur placed more than enough money down to cover their bill before pulling Ariadne up and dragging her from the establishment, they walked hand in hand along the streets of LA, her eyes only leaving his face to check that she wasn't about to bump into anything. He was acting so impulsively, Arthur himself was concerned by his own change in character, this young architecture student had had such an effect on him and he wasn't sure if he minded.

She would gather her things and put them back into her bag, while he called the airline and booked them two tickets back to France, she could hardly believe this was happening, but a quick tip of her bishop would tell her that she was not dreaming. Her heart would flutter wildly in her chest every time his gaze fell upon her. She noted then that she had never seen him smile so much, his face was usually so impassive, a smirk would sometimes lift his eyes slightly, but this full on smile was something new and she decided that it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Arthur had saved her when she had been at her most afraid and for that she was more that grateful. In her eyes she owed him everything, but she knew that he would never allow her to repay, so she would have to settle for loving him.

Arthur thought that that was a very fair trade indeed.

**A/N Oh hai. I haven't writen a story on here for well over two years, but I went to see Inception (twice) and I fell in love with Arthur & Ariadne. I hope you have enjoyed this, (the ending is a bit rushed and I don't like it that much) I will be starting an Inception chapter fic sometime soon. Anyway, reviews are lovely. (They make me super happy) No flames thanks.**


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